Festival Lights
by Jeice Lover
Summary: The weather grows cool, but the heat of emotions runs high as the True Cross Festival approaches. And with it, the long-awaited dance. Even as they try to understand their own feelings for one another, two young exorcists-in-training must run this gauntlet of pressure and budding romances in order to enjoy this anticipated event. (Also found on a tumblr of mine)


"Oi, Baldy." Arthur, who had been sitting in the grass with a book on famous knights in his lap, looked up upon hearing both the familiar voice and the familiar nickname.

"Oh, Shura." It was indeed Shura, the fiery redhead who was a part of his class in the Cram School, and his normal classes in True Cross Academy High School. The blond looked up at the girl standing over him, ignoring the bulge of her cleavage as he looked towards her face. "Hello, was there something you needed?"

"Yeah, there is." Shura reached down between her breasts and extracted a folded up piece of paper. She unfolded it and held it out to him, and Arthur saw that it was a poster announcing the upcoming True Cross Festival.

"...Something about the festival?" he asked, slightly confused. They were in the same class in regular school, so they were both a part of helping to set up their class's cafe. Honestly, he hadn't thought she cared about it all too much. She seemed more like she would rather avoid doing any work for it. "I thought you didn't care about the cafe."

"Not the class thing, ya' dork. This." She jabbed her finger closer to the bottom of the paper. Arthur followed with his gaze, and read over the words there.

"...A dance party?" he asked finally. That was all he had seen. The poster proclaimed that a big dance would be held on the second day of the festival. There would be food, entertainment, and music (by bands he had never heard of), amongst other things.

"Yeah. There's always supposed to be this huge dance party during the festival, everybody wants to go. Problem is, ya' gotta' have a date to get let in." She huffed and rolled her eyes as she folded her arms over her chest. "I already know I'm gonna get a crap-ton of guys asking me, but they'll all be expectin' me to act all lovey-dovey and like a couple 'n stuff if I say yes." She stuck out her tongue at the very thought. "So, I want ya' to come with me instead, 'cause I know ya' won't go tryin' anything on me." Arthur stared at her a moment as he comprehended her words.

"...So... you want me to go to the dance with you?"

"Duh. Waddaya' think I've been talkin' about this whole time?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "Ya don't gotta say yes if ya' don't wanna' go. I can find someone else easy." Just not someone she might have preferred more.

"No, you don't have to do that," Arthur answered quickly. "I mean... the festival sounds like fun, and it would be nice to go to something like that with a friend."

"...So ya' wanna go with me then?" Shura asked.

"Yes...I would like to go to the dance with you," Arthur answered, looking at her with genuine earnest in his eyes. Shura blinked, then grinned and pumped a fist into the air.

"Bitchin'! I'm goin'! This thing is supposed to be awesome! I hear that one band is gonna' be playing there, I always wanted to hear 'em live." She laughed and grinned at him again. "Thanks dude. This thing is gonna be great, and _I_ get ta' go!" She paused. "Oh yeah, ye'll be goin, too, but I'm goin' and that's what really matters!" Arthur was a bit surprised by her excited outburst, but at the same time, slightly gratified. If she was this happy just because he had agreed to go with her, he was glad that he had said yes.

"Like I said, it sounds fun. And it would be really nice to go to something like this with a good friend." Especially as good a friend as she was, but he could never say _that_ aloud.

"Right! Alright, ya said ya'd go with me, so ya can't go and say ye'll go with anyone else now. And if ya' do, I'm gonna' hunt ya' down and beat yer ass," she threatened, holding a balled fist at him. Arthur held up his palms defensively, a nervous expression on his features.

"Don't worry! I promised I would go with you, so I'm going to go with you. Besides, I doubt anyone else would have asked me anyways." Shura stared him down a moment longer, then turned around and shrugged her shoulders lightly.

"Ah, I know ya' won't, I'm just teasing ya'," she snickered. "I knew ya'd go if I asked ya', that's _why_ I asked ya', after all. Ye'll do stuff if ya' say ya' will." She turned her head and grinned over her shoulder at him. "Welp, thanks fer sayin' yes, I gotta' go do somethin' fer the od man now. See ya in class, Baldy~"

Arthur watched his redheaded friend bounce off down the path, laughing her odd little laugh all the way along.

"... _So you two will be going as a couple then, I take it_?" Arthur started when he heard Caliburn's voice emit, rather huffily, from her blade, which was lying in the grass beside him. At the word 'couple' a light flush overtook Arthur's face.

"I-it's not like that, Caliburn!" he stammered. "She just asked me to go with her as a friend, that's all! It's not like she was asking me on an actual d-date!" He could hardly even say the word with some stuttering.

" _So you say,_ " was her simple response. Arthur sighed and got up from the grass, re-strapping Caliburn to his back and marking the place in his book with a scrap of paper. He wouldn't be able to concentrate on reading anymore today, that was for certain.

–

"What happened to you? Shine so brightly that you blinded yourself and ran into a wall?" Arthur mostly ignored Lightning's dual-purpose insult/compliment and went to sit on the other boy's bed. As usual, thanks to his horrid abilities in science and mathematics, he was forced to go to his friend for tutoring. And this time around he had come in with a large, pink mark on his cheek.

"No. I was coming over here, and a third year girl came up to me. She wanted to ask me if I wanted to go to the dance with her." The onyxette grinned and leaned back in his chair, hands resting on the back of his neck.

"Let me guess, you turned her down," he all but snickered. Arthur nodded, rubbing the pink spot on his face.

"Yeah. When I told her I couldn't go with her, she started crying. Then I tried to talk to her to calm her down, but then she just slapped me and ran off." Arthur sighed, palm still resting on his left cheek. "At least she didn't' slap me on my right side," he amended to himself, thinking of the bandaged scar hidden under his bangs.

"So you turned a girl down, so what?" Lightning asked with a grin. "She sounded too over-emotional anyhow. Probably just desperate to find a date for the dance."

"It wasn't' just her," Arthur sighed. "Including her, I've had at least fourteen girls who have asked me to go to the dance with them. Five of them cried when I said no. She was the only one who slapped me, though." He picked up his bag with a forlorn expression. "And those are just the ones who asked me in person." He held out his bag and unceremoniously dumped the contents onto Lightning's bed. Among the books and school supplies, there fell at least twenty envelopes colored with pinks, with numerous qualities of handwriting spelling out his name on the backs. "I found all of these stuffed into my locker just today."

"Woo~ Mr. Popularity~" Lightning grinned and snatched up one of the envelopes. He opened it up and raised an eyebrow (not that Arthur could actually see it, thanks to his fringe of hair. "Wow, Kagari Miyanoshita?" He whistled appreciatively. "She's _really_ popular, _and_ another third year." The onyxette chuckled and threw an arm around his friend. "I'm impressed. You drew all of 'em in without even trying."

"It's not something I'm too happy about, honestly," Arthur admitted as he began scooping up the love letters and stuffing them back into his bag. "I'm mostly worried about how I'm going to say no to all of them without making any more cry." Lightning reclined against the headboard of his bed and watched the other teen stow away the envelopes.

"So why don't you wanna' go to the dance with anyone?" he asked. Lightning picked up a warm, half-empty can of soda from his bedside table and took a sip. "Just can't be bothered?"

"No," Arthur answered without looking up. "I'm going to the dance, but I already have someone to go with."

"Really? Who?" Lightning tipped back his head to drain down the rest of the soda from the can.

"Shura." There was a loud spluttering noise as Lightning spat out the remainder of his drink back into the rim of the can.

"Wait, _you_ asked Shura to go to the dance with you?" The other stared at him incredulously, apparently unaware of the soda dripping from his chin.

"No, she asked me," Arthur corrected as he finished organizing his re-filled bag. "She really wanted to go, but there wasn't anyone she really wanted to go with as a date. So she asked me if I wanted to go with her as a friend." He was surprised when he looked up and found his friend guffawing loudly.

"Ga ha ha!' Right, as a ' _friend_ '." Lightning was laughing so hard that he looked like he was having trouble breathing.

"...Is there something funny about that?" Arthur asked with confusion.

"Dude..." Lightning gasped, trying to speak and catch his breath at the same time. "Dude, I'm pretty sure she asked you as more than just a friend."

"What do you mean?"

"I _mean_ that she wanted you to go with her as her date." Lightning could have laughed again at the look on the blond's face. "Why do you look so shocked? I thought you'd be happy about that, since you like her and all." He paused a moment, then smirked mischievously as he decided to stoke the flames further. "And I mean _like_ like her." He was rewarded greatly by seeing Arthur's face turn dark red with a heavy rush of blood that flowed to his cheeks.

"N-no! That's not-! I mean-! But I'm not-! And she's so-!" Arthur cursed his tongue at that moment. He could fluently speak eight languages, but he couldn't find the right words when he really needed them. "W-well... she was the one who said-!"

"Did she say she wanted you with her as a friend? Or is that just how _you_ interpreted it?" To be perfectly honest, he was just saying all of this to mess with him. But all of this was just so funny to the onyxette that he couldn't stop now that he'd started. Honestly, if Arthur's face got any redder than the shade it was now, someone might mistake him for a tomato. "I knew it. I know denial when I see it~ She likes you and you like her back~"

"I-It's really not like that!" Arthur finally managed to blurt out. "I mean, you know Shura. Someone like her, she wouldn't really _like_ someone like me." It seemed as though he was trying to be confident, but his eyes were downcast just a bit as he said it. "I respect her a lot, and she _is_ pretty, but I only see her as a friend." Lightning was quiet for a moment, and Arthur believed he had finally proven his point.

"...I think all those mornings you've been washing your bedsheets recently say otherwise~" Lightning finally responded with a grin. The onyxette cackled loudly as Arthur flopped forward face first into the other's bed, growling with muffled exasperation into the blankets.

–

" _What do you mean you're not taking me along?! I always go everywhere with you, Arthur!_ " The blond gave his sword an apologetic look as he pulled a shirt out of his dresser drawer. He attempted to explain himself as he changed from his night-wear into his day-wear.

"I told you, Caliburn: I need to go out into town with Shura today so I can buy clothes for the dance next week. It would draw too much attention to carry you around on a public street, so I need to leave you behind today."

" _It never bothered you when you walked around carrying me before,_ " Caliburn huffed. " _Besides, what if you need me? What if you get attacked by a demon and I'm not there?_ "

"This is different," Arthur tried to explain. "We were always moving from place to place before. We weren't ever in one place long enough for people to really take notice of us, and we never went back to the same place again. I'll be here at this academy for three years until I complete Cram School _and_ high school, and it's not good to draw too much attention to myself." He grabbed up a hairbrush and ran it quickly through his blond locks. "Anyways, the whole town is protected by seals and barriers, there wouldn't be any demons strong enough to hurt me who could possibly get in."

" _Well... what's wrong with your clothes? I think they look just fine._ "

"For every day, yes, but... the dance is special, I guess, so I need something nice to go in." He picked up his hair-tie and tied back a small portion of his hair, as always, leaving some bangs to cover up his bandaged scar, and a small portion of the other side of his face. "Why are you so upset about this, Caliburn? You're usually fine when I leave you here to go to my academic classes."

" _Because you'll be alone all day with that stupid girl! You know that I don't like her! I think she's a bad influence on you!_ " Arthur frowned, and was about to respond in some way, but stopped when he saw his clock.

"Oh no! I'm going to be late!" He quickly snatched up his wallet and key, tossed on his uniform jacket, and ran out of the room. "I'm sorry Caliburn! I'll have to talk to you later! Goodbye!" He called over his shoulder to her just before he slammed the door shut, leaving Caliburn alone in his room.

" _Hmph. Well I never._ "

–

"'Bout time ya' got here, Baldy. I was about to go off and just grab a suit for ya'. 'R maybe a dress." She snickered at the thought of the serious blond wearing a dress.

"Sorry to make you wait so long. I was studying late last night, so I woke up late this morning." Shura only waved off his apology.

"Ah, don't bother apologizin', I was the one who called ya' out here." She sighed loudly and put her hands up behind her head, which noticeably pushed her chest out. "T' be honest, I really don't care if ya' wear somethin' nice 'r not. But I told the old man that I was takin' ya' to the dance with me, and he got all huffy and said he was gonna beat yer head in if ya' weren't wearin' somethin' nice. I was the one who invited ya' and all, so I'd feel guilty and all that crap if he did 'cause I didn't warn ya' about it." She shrugged. "I needed a new dress fer me anyhow, so I figured I'd just drag ya' along for the ride so we could get it done, since I was already goin' out myself."

"Well, thank you for inviting me anyways," Arthur smiled slightly in return. The two walked into the open air shopping center, and looked at all of the various storefronts. Arthur had been to places like this before, in all sorts of different countries. This one was no exception to all that he had experienced before. Shops selling food, trinkets, clothing, and all the other usual things someone might look for in a day of shopping.

He spotted what looked like a promising store as they walked down the sidewalk. There was a wide display window in the front, with a display of mannequins wearing nice dressed and suits. The two teens entered the shop, and were immediately greeted by a clerk standing behind the register. As it turned out, many other students preparing for the dance had thought that this would be a good place to buy their clothing for the event, so the clerk was able to guess why a couple of people their age would enter their humble shop.

The young woman was so kind as to show them to the section with clothing in some of the current styles that teenagers were looking at. They thanked her for her help, but declined when she offered to help them find a matching outfit set. So, the clerk left them to their own devices, and the both of them went in search of their own outfits.

It felt odd to Arthur, not having Caliburn's weight on his back while he was out and about like this. Still, he knew that Shura wasn't too far away, so he wasn't uneasy or anything. After a bit of searching in silence, he found an set that looked like the best for him. It was a rather plain set, white suit with a white undershirt, and a pair of white dress shoes to go with it. He was just passing the entrances to the changing rooms, on his way to the tie rack to find a finisher for the ensemble, when someone walked out of the rooms with a dress hanging from her arm.

"Oh, there ya' are, Baldy. Find yer outfit yet?" Recognizing Shura's voice, Arthur turned without thinking.

"Almost. I was just looking for a tie to go with my suit." He saw the redhead standing there, holding what looked like a shiny purple dress. "Oh, did you already find what kind of dress you wanted?"

"Yeah. I like purple, and this thing looked nice on me. I didn't really wanna' spend too much time on this thing, so I just chose it." She eyed the clothing on his arm, and raised an eyebrow at him. "That's a lotta' white. Don't ya' think ya' oughta ' add some color to that?" Arthur looked at his chosen clothing with a blank expression.

"Um...I wasn't really thinking about it, honestly," he admitted. Shura groaned and grabbed him by the arm, then dragged him over to the tie rack. "Well, I ain't gonna make ya change what ya ' got, 'cause I don't wanna stay here too much longer. But I wanna' at least see ya pick out a decent tie to go with all that. I don't want my date to look like he's just got out of a funeral 'r somethin'." Arthur started at bit at the word 'date', but then made himself relax.

 _What am I doing, worrying about that? I know she didn't mean me as her date like a boyfriend. She just meant me as her date to the dance. Right..._ He was so lost in thought, he didn't realize Shura was looking through the ties until she shoved something in his face.

"Hold still, Baldy," she ordered. "And keep yer eyes open." Arthur did as she said, though he was confused as to why she had him do that. He thought he could see her holding something next to his face. Whatever it was, she nodded in approval and shrugged her shoulders. "Well, it'll do. It ain't perfect, but at least it goes with yer eyes. And hey, all that white would go with anything. So here ya' go." She shoved whatever she had been holding near his face into his hand. As it turned out, it was a single colored, plain, light blue tie. "Now go try that on so we can get outta' here," she ordered as she pointed at the changing rooms.

"R-right." Arthur took the tie from her and went into the men's changing rooms. He chose a stall and quickly changed out into the suit and tie combination. It felt comfortable, and the color looked nice. Well, as nice as he thought nice went, considering he usually only ever wore white or black. All things considered, he thought it looked nice. Arthur looked into the mirror, fingering the tie thoughtfully. Shura had been right in choosing it, he thought, it was a nice color, and really did match with his eyes...

"Are ya' done in there yet?" The blond started when he heard Shura calling to him impatiently.

"Y-yes! Just changing back! I'll be out in a minute!" Arthur quickly hopped back into the stall, switched back out into his normal clothing, and came out to where Shura was. "Okay, I'm ready." The two paid for their clothing, thanked the clerk, and were on their way. Arthur didn't know why, but he felt an odd sort of satisfaction as he walked down the main street, going alongside Shura with the bag of clothing in one hand. "Um... that was sort of fun, don't you think, Shura?" he asked timidly as he looked at the redhead.

"Mer," came the simple reply. "Wasn't horrible, anyways. Coulda' been worse, I guess. I'm just glad te' get it over with." Arthur nodded, then looked away shyly. Well... he had sort of enjoyed it, anyways. "Aw, look! A crepe store!" Arthur looked up to where Shura was pointing, and sure enough, there was a sign announcing a shop that sold fresh crepes. A few people were standing out front, smiling with cream-covered chins as they enjoyed the treats. "Man, those look so good," she groaned, "but I used up all the money the old man gave me when I bought the stupid dress." She was actually pouting over the fact that she couldn't have one.

"Um... if you'd really like a crepe, I could buy one for you," Arthur offered. At his words, his friend's face immediately lit up.

"Really? Awesome! Let's go get some then!" She grabbed him by the arm and dragged him over to the storefront. Arthur fished out his wallet and bought one crepe for each of them, both strawberry and cream. Shura let out an 'mmm' of satisfaction as she ate the treat. "Ah, that is so good~ Thanks fer the food, Baldy."

"It's no problem, I'm glad you like it," the blond responded. As Arthur bit into his crepe, he smiled a bit, though his expression was hidden behind the tip of the strawberry-and-cream filled treat he held before his mouth. ... _This is fun, spending time with Shura like this. I can't wait for the festival to come._

–

Arthur fidgeted and adjusted his tie as he looked through the throng of people who were attending the dance. There sure were a lot of people around and so many lights. It sort of brought to mind the crowds of people in the streets of Saint Petersburg during Christmas time, or the bustling _calles_ of Spain in the nights before their famous 'running of the bulls'. It was a bit overwhelming, being in such a large crowd.

"Oi! Baldy! Over here!" The blond looked up, feeling relieved when he saw Shura's familiar face coming towards him. Just behind her was Mr. Fujimoto, their teacher. "Man, I thought I'd never find ya' in this crowd. It's a freakin' mob out here."

"Um, hello Shura, Mr. Fujimoto." Arthur looked at the two, then did something of a double-take when he saw Shura. She was wearing that purple dress he had seen her holding in the store a week ago, but he hadn't known what it really looked like until just now. It was a cocktail dress of sorts, with thin, lilac straps holding in place a dress of a deeper violet, the shade of which complemented her eyes. The fabric itself seemed to be speckled with small speckles of glitter, or something else that made the dress seem to shimmer in the various lights of the festival. "I..." Arthur felt his face heat up slightly, and dearly hoped that the semi-darkness hid the light blush he felt rising in his face. "I... you look very nice tonight, Shura," he murmured, tilting his head a bit so that his bangs fell into his face more.

"Thanks. Ya' don't look half bad yerself, now yer not just wearin' a school uniform. Ya' oughta' wear different clothes more often," Shura replied.

"Hey, kid," Mr. Fujimoto greeted. "Man, the festival here sure is lively, ain't it? Good thing they got teachers like me making sure there's no trouble going on around here."

"Yeah, right, whatever," Shura shrugged. "Hey, Baldy, the line fer ID badges is over there. Gimme yer card and ticket, and I'll go grab yers for ya."

"Oh, sure. Thank you, Shura." Arthur handed her what she asked for, and she ran off, saying she would be right back. This left Arthur alone with Fujimoto, who stood with him in silence for a moment. "Um... the festival sure looks like it will be a lot of fun," Arthur said softly, just loudly enough for his teacher to hear him. "There're a lot of people here, and everyone seems like they're having a good time."

"Yeah, this place is fun," Fujimoto agreed. "And you know what, I think that you 'n Shura will have a good time together," the old man went on sagely. "You'd _better_ make sure she has a good time, anyways." Arthur blinked, surprised at how quickly Fujimoto had gone from sounding amiable to threatening in just a moment.

"I..."

"Listen, kid," Fujimoto went on, looking at him with a serious face. "I know you're both excited to be here and all, and you want to have a good time. But..." he was suddenly right in Arthur's face, looking him dead in the eye. "Don't you two get _too_ carried away while you have fun tonight, alright?" Arthur was about to respond, but his teacher suddenly laughed and slapped him on the shoulder. "Ah, I know I can trust you to do that much. You're a good kid. I'm actually more glad she chose _you_ than any of the other punks here at this school. At least I know you're _somewhat_ respectable."

"I... thank you?" the blond responded hesitantly. Fujimoto grinned at him again, which slowly turned to a softer sort of smile.

"Look, just make sure she has a good time tonight, okay? I want you both to have fun, just don't let your hormones carry that too far out of proportion, alright?" When Arthur nodded to the affirmative, Fujimoto nodded and slapped his shoulder again. "Good kid. That's the spirit." Fujimoto looked him over again. "Oh, yeah, before I forget. Hold still just a moment." Arthur stood straight and held still, wondering why he was doing so, and was almost more surprised than before she his teacher leaned over and straightened his tie for him. "I refuse to let her go with a guy who can't even wear a tie straight." He fiddled with the accessory, and stood back with a grin and a solid slap to Arthur's chest when he was done. "There ya' go, all nice and neat." He looked up. "And here she comes now. Welp, I'll leave you two alone, I've got other teens to supervise. Remember, have fun." With that, Father Fujimoto left, waving over his shoulder as he disappeared into the crowd.

"'m back, sorry I took so long. The line was _way_ too long" Shura greeted as she returned. "Here's yer ID thing." She handed the ID tag over to him, then looked around when she saw Fujimoto was no longer present. "Hey, where'd the old man go?" Before Arthur could answer, she only shrugged and grinned. "Ah, whatever, let's just go and get the party started~"

And it indeed was a party. Everywhere they looked seemed to be some big type of entertainment or other. There was food from nice restaurants, and some particularly good booths from the students. Up on stage, popular music artists played song after song for the cheering students, which wafted about through speakers around the rest of the festival. Dancers, performers, and other types of entertainment were up and about, much to the interest of some of the resting students. There were small games like one might find at other types of festivals, like goldfish scooping and small gallery shooting booths. There were even carnival-type rides, like a merry-go-round and a giant Ferris wheel. All in all, it was really an amazing and impressive party.

The duo of young exorcists-in-training were enjoying everything they could find to the fullest. They ate and drank from the stalls, played the games, watched the acts all about, (mostly Shura) danced to the wild music. All in all, it was probably the most fun Arthur had ever had all in one place. Even the massive festivals of Spain or China had found their matches here, in his own opinion.

The two had run into Lightning briefly during the whole party. As it so happened, he _had_ managed to find someone who would go with him. Arthur recognized her in particular, seeing as she was the third year who had slapped him when he had refused her. Thankfully, that meeting had been short, so there hadn't been any drama as a result.

It was coming on four in the morning when things finally started to quiet down a fraction. At that point, the both of them had collapsed onto a bench, sighing from exhaustion. A small portion of the crowd had drifted away, and some of the entertainment and food had slowed, but the party itself was still going fairly strong.

"Man, this really _is_ one hell of a party," Shura grinned. "I don't even think any of the summer festivals the clown throws could ever top this." She sighed, and leaned back to close her eyes. "But this night ain't over just yet. Let's sit here a minute, then we'll go dance to one more song. _Then_ I'll be too tired to move."

"Okay..." Arthur answered. Truth be told, the blond wasn't all too tired. There had been nights in the past when he'd had to stay awake from when the sun rose one morning, all the way until it rose again the next. He could probably have gone on for a while longer, but they _did_ have to get back to their classes' booth for the festival the next day. They both sat there in silence for just a moment, resting their feet as they watched the crowd of couples go by, all of them holding hands.

On an impulse, Arthur glanced down at the space in-between them. His right hand was sitting next to Shura's, just barely a couple of inches apart. Perhaps it was because he had eaten too many sugary things, or he was more tired than he had thought. Whatever the reason, though, he began to slowly slide his hand over to hers. However, right as their fingers were just barely touching, he paused, then curled up his fingers and pulled his hand away again. What was he thinking just then? That was what you did on a date, and they were just there as friends... Yet, somehow, the idea of being there as just friends didn't have the same sort of appeal as it had before.

"Aw damn," he heard Shura suddenly groan beside him. "The band's playin' its last songs. Guess that means the party's over, huh?" Arthur hadn't really been paying attention to the music, but he now realized that the music had slowed, and was now moving to the calm, slow pace of a ballroom dance. "Welp, that's all done, so how 'bout we get outta' here, huh?"

"Um... Shura?" The redhead looked at him, eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, what's up?" Arthur looked down shyly. He had mostly let her lead him around wherever she had .wanted to go tonight, which he had been perfectly fine with, honestly. But now that he had found something he really wanted to do, he didn't want to just stay quiet.

"I...was wondering..." he mumbled slowly. "Would you...maybe..." The blond took in a deep breath, he needed to say it before he lost his nerve. "Would you like to dance with me?" He held still, waiting for her answer.

"...On a slow-dance?" Shura asked, looking at him oddly. "...Meh, sure, why not?" Arthur swore he felt his heart skip a beat. She had said yes! "So, we gonna' do this, then?" he heard her ask.

"R-right. Um, I... let-let's go." The two of them stood up from their bench, and they headed towards the area that was something of the unofficial dance floor. There were already a lot of pairs there, smiling and gently swaying to the music with their partner. They eyed the place for a moment, until they had found a place with a suitable amount of space for them to dance.

"Jest so ya know, I ain't real good at slow dancing," Shura warned him as they faced one another. Arthur dipped his head a bit, feeling as thought he was being a bit too bold here.

"Th-that's okay," he responded quietly. "Just... you can just follow me. I know how to dance like this." It took a moment, but finally they had it so they had their hands in the proper dance. Then, when all of that was settled, the two of them began to dance.

The song was slow, but sweet. The calm notes floated through the air like a mist of sound gently enveloping the dancers in a relaxing cloud of music. Like many of the other couples present on the floor, the two young exorcists could feel the soothing flow of the music, and they could feel the sounds calm even their souls.

If it hadn't been for the mostly-darkness of their surroundings, Arthur was certain that Shura would have easily been able to see the darkening flush in his face. The two of them were so close together, and it was...nice. Although the blond couldn't tell what his friend was thinking, he sincerely hoped that she was having as much fun as he was at that moment. He realized... her head was raised up just a bit. If he were to just, tilt his head down, and lean in, just a bit, then they...their lips would be...

"Oh, song's over," Shura's voice suddenly broke through his thoughts. She was right, the song had finished while he had been lost in thought, and another song had broken in. "Well, let's get outta' here, then." Arthur could have sworn he felt a harsh pang of disappointment in his chest when she pulled away. What on earth had he been thinking just then? Was he thinking about... _kissing_ her? But, they were just there as friends! He had said such over and over again! He was probably just tired, or maybe he had eaten something funny from one of the booths. Or maybe- "Oi, Baldy, ya' comin' 'r not? Arthur snapped out of his thoughts when he heard her voice coming through.

"I...right, I'm coming." Arthur shrunk in on himself a bit as he followed Shura out of the crowds, all the way through the party, until the sounds of the music and the remaining crowds were only echoes in the mostly-empty paths of the academy. They kept walking and walking, until they finally reached the girls' dorms where Shura lived. Just outside the entrance, they stopped, and Arthur listened to Shura talk to him.

"Man, that really was one hell of a party," Shura sighed happily. "I'm definitely gonna' go back next year. What about you, Baldy? Was there too much excitement there fer ya'?"

"I...no," he responded quietly. "It...it was fun." She smiled in response and rested her hands up behind her head.

"Yeah, _definitely_ goin' back. Hey, maybe we can go together again next year. I had fun partyin' with ya." She caught a glance at the look on his face, and lowered her eyebrows. "But if ya' don't wanna' go with me again next year, then that's fine, too. I can always find some other guy ta' go with me." Arthur felt his heart thump harshly in his chest at this statement. He didn't know why, but it was something about the way idea of her, going with someone else to this same dance the next year... "I mean, if ya' really didn't have fun," she went on, "I ain't gonna' drag ya' back. I just thought it looked like ya' were havin' a good time, while we were there. So I thought maybe ya'd-"

What happened next was entirely impulse, Arthur had no idea why he did it. All he knew was, one moment she was talking, the next, he had leaned over, and was pressing her lips up against hers. He was looking her in the eyes as he kissed her, and really noted again how pretty that shade of violet was. It was just like that for a moment: the two of them standing there, uncertain of what was really happening or what to do about it as their lips were pressing gently against one another. Finally, though, Arthur loosened the light pressure on their lips, and stood up and away from her. In the light that came down from the streetlamps, both of their blushes were plain for one each other to see. Especially Arthur's, as his entire face was more red than a cherry tomato. The blond looked away from his friend uncertainly, seeming both nervous and exhilarated at the same time.

"I...um...goodnight, Shura." With this, he turned tail and ran off down the path. He didn't stop until he had run all the way to the boys' dorm, and even then he still hurried through the hallways to his room. However, even after he had run all that way, and had tossed himself into his bed, clothes and all, he still couldn't shake the warm, soft feel of her lips against his.

–

Shura just stood there a while, violet eyes open wide, fingers just barely brushing against her lips. As she stared off in the direction her blond friend had disappeared into, she was only just aware of a light blush that had spread across her cheeks.

"...The hell was all that about?" she murmured. As she stood there in silence, her unanswered question still hanging in the air, the only sound she could hear was the quick, excited pace of her heart beating in her chest.


End file.
